If you weren’t aware, Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson traveled to Davos, Switzerland, last week to attend the World Economic Forum. He served as a panelist in a session titled “Decongesting Cities.” You can watch the entire thing right here. If you’re pressed for time, though, here’s my three-point executive summary:
First, the mayor said, “Every mayor’s job, whether they know it or not, is to make their city as fun as possible without making it unsafe for people. We want to keep people safe and let them enjoy themselves. That’s the goal.”
Second, just as the mayor began his remarks, an audience member was violently mauled by the sleep monster. When he initially appeared over the mayor’s right shoulder, the man was fighting the monster as best he could. He remained upright for several long seconds. But then he listed and eventually succumbed, slumping forward as you see him in the photo at the top of this post. Go to the 3:40 mark of the video if you want to see for yourself and if you have a strong stomach. Warning: it’s grisly. The man’s lanyard clearly displays his name, but I am not using it here because it is D Magazine’s policy not to name victims of such horrific attacks.
Third, Mayor Johnson wore pea-soup green Allbirds sneakers with his suit.